Former Aramcons Gather on the Treasure Coast of Florida
- Community
- Annuitants & Former ExPats
Author: Daren Lamb
Released 14 July 2006
Carolyn Thomas, Daren Lamb, Dr. Alfred Bobb, and Fred Bobb
Treasure Coast Lunch Bunch Gathering, May 21, 2006
Photograph Contributed by Jean Eastin
We've just returned home from our very first Treasure Coast of Florida Lunch Bunch get-together at the Riverside Cafe in Vero Beach.
There was a great crowd coming from all over the coast, from Daytona Beach to Jonathan's Landing, and everywhere in-between.
We had a great time. As you know, there is always a lot of stuff to talk about when Aramcons get together. Even though few of us were in the same communities at the same time, we all know what the others are talking about when we speak of The Surf House, Sandy Hook, Dhahran Dining Hall, camels, goat grabs, hamoor, thobes, gutras, and of course, the abaya. We can relate to riding a camel at the Pyramids and climbing the steps of the Parthenon, swimming in Bali, shopping in the market of Beirut or the gold suk Dammam. If you go a long way back, you've been to the casino in Beirut or to the Tribal Pass in Afghanistan. Remember Middle East Airways and the absolutely delicious fruit they gave you when you boarded their planes? And remember those darling little Delft bleu Dutch houses filled with chocolates KLM used to give you when airlines competed for your business?
I once knew someone who had lived in Ras Tanura for ten years, retired and moved back to a farm in a small town in Minnesota. They returned to RT after just a few years, and when I asked her why, she said, "Well, Daren, I was at a family picnic one day, and I began a sentence, "One day when we were walking down the street in Rome... and my sister in law cut me off, and said, 'Mary, just who in the heck are you trying to impress?' I realized at that moment that I didn't belong back there, so we came back to Saudi Arabia." That describes why we all like to get together. We understand what each other is talking about, and don't have to explain anything.
Anyway, we didn't get our talks out, so we'll have to plan another event in a few months.
Thanks to the 28 or 30 who attended. You helped make our affair a good one.